I recently have more time on my hands, and decided to try out a long-awaited computer project – installing a solid state drive (SSD) into my computer.

SSDs are built like the flash memory in thumb drives and iPhones. Unlike conventional hard drives, there are no moving parts. This means much faster transfer speeds, lower failure rates, and greater energy efficiency.

Unfortunately, SSDs are still very expensive. A typical 1Tb external hard drive can now be had for less than S$99. Instead, I bought a Crucial M4 64Gb SSD drive for USD99 from Amazon.com.

Gb for Gb, the SSD is about 20 times more expensive. That’s why I bought such a small-capacity SSD, to be tried out on my spare 11.6″ HP dm1 laptop.